August 1, 2016: Car Wars Delayed Until 2017

In the 2015 Report to the Stakeholders, I gave us a deadline of July 2 to send Car Wars sixth edition to print for a late 2016 release. Earlier this year, after a close review of the whole line -- the first year of planned games and expansions, not just the basic game -- we determined that it was best to delay the release of the new edition of Car Wars until 2017. We could have pushed forward and put the game into stores for Christmas of this year, but that would have meant no immediate support which would have left players without any new game options or miniatures for several months.

It is best, we decided, to have the first six months of Car Wars supplements complete so that players who enjoy the game have access to new game material -- weapons, gadgets, scenarios, accessories -- shortly after cracking open the box for the first time.

We continue to work on Car Wars, and at the moment we can report that:

The game features twelve different factions: six wasteland factions and six arena factions. Each faction represents a gang, corporation, outlaw group, or other organization within the Car Wars world.

There are three points of entry into the Car Wars game: The two-player Wastelands Starter, the two-player Arenas Starter, and the four-player Car Wars game. A player may buy any one of those and start playing immediately, and buying all three allows up to eight to play at once.

From wheels to machineguns, Car Wars sixth edition is a new game. Everything from combat to maneuvering to vehicle design was designed to get players into combat within moments of sitting down at the table. The driving goal behind the overall creative process is best summed up with three words: Cars. With. Guns.

Car Wars sixth edition features plastic car miniatures at HO scale. Miniatures are included in the three games as well as in faction-specific expansion sets. At the moment, it looks like one faction pack – loaded with three plastic miniatures, several new game cards, and whatever tokens are required to use the cars in combat – will cost players $19.95. That's a lot of new options at a low price!

James Lowder, established author and editor with decades of experience in and out of the game industry, is at work on the first anthology of new stories set in the Car Wars sixth edition world. It is 2117, and this book tells a dozen tales, each centered on a different faction. Additionally, the anthology will include twelve new game cards so that players can incorporate bits of the stories into their game sessions.

We are taking both the Car Wars anthology and the new game to Kickstarter, and the two projects will connect. The fiction project is first, and backers of the Car Wars anthology project who also back the game on Kickstarter will receive special bonus cards when they receive their rewards.

Additionally, we will offer special retailer reward levels for both projects. We will release information through our retailer newsletter once the projects launch on Kickstarter.

We want to thank all of you for your patience as we work toward completing the first wave of Car Wars sixth edition games and supplements. Retailers who want to play the new game are welcome to join us at our office on October 3, and gamers who are anxious to drive fast and fire weapons are invited to see us at BoardGameGeek Con in November. Austin gamers, watch the Daily Illuminator for playtest announcements; we plan to open to wider playtesting in Austin starting in October.